'Extreme heat epidemic' hitting humanity, UN warns
July 25, 2024
Humanity is suffering from an "extreme heat epidemic," warned UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Thursday.
He highlighted that Monday was the hottest day on record, surpassing the record set just one day earlier.
"Billions of people are facing an extreme heat epidemic — wilting under increasingly deadly heat waves, with temperatures topping 50 degrees Celsius around the world," Guterres said. "That's 122 degrees Fahrenheit. And halfway to boiling."
He called for action to limit the impact of heat waves, which are being exacerbated by climate change.
Heat more deadly than cyclons
Intense heat is often less visible than other devastating effects of climate change, such as storms or floods. But it is more deadly.
The "silent killer" was responsible for some 489,000 deaths per year between 2000 and 2019, compared to 16,000 deaths per year from cyclones, according to the UN "Call to Action on extreme heat" document released Thursday.
Guterres urged the world's countries to adopt several proposals aimed at reducing heat-related deaths, starting with help to cool and care for the most vulnerable — the poor, the elderly, the young and the sick.
"Crippling heat is everywhere, but it doesn't affect everyone equally," Guterres said. "Extreme heat amplifies inequality, inflames food insecurity and pushes people further into poverty."
Heat warning systems could save lives
The UN also called for better heat wave warnings, expanded "passive cooling," better urban design, stronger protections for outdoor workers and greater efforts to address human-caused climate change that's exacerbating weather extremes.
If countries adopt the UN's recommendations to combat heat, "these measures could protect 3.5 billion people by 2050, while slashing emissions and saving consumers $1 trillion a year," Guterres said, citing a UN Environment Programme estimate.
Better heat health warning systems in 57 countries could save 98,314 lives a year, the report said, based on estimates from the World Health Organization and the World Meteorological Organization.
What were the three hottest days on record? Sunday, Monday and Tuesday.
According to the European Copernicus network, July 21, 22 and 23 were the three hottest days ever recorded worldwide, with July 22 holding the absolute record of 17.16 degrees Celsius (62.9 degrees Fahrenheit).
All three days were hotter than Earth's previous hottest day in 2023.
Temperatures well over 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit) are becoming more common. While 2023 was the hottest year on record, 2024 is likely to set a new record.
dh/sms (AP, AFP)